As it's Spring Equinox today so Spring, is sprung.

Good to see technological developments in use on the market - here Gary collects size and species data electronically for Cefas...

as the morning's mackerel are sold...

after nearly two weeks of gales fish from the entire inshore fleet that mustered on Monday morning were up for auction including this nice shot of John Dory from the Still Waters... 

plaice...

red mullet, ling...

and brill from the Shiralee...

enough to make that happy man Colin from Mousehole Fish serenade the fish...

so fresh these cuttles are almost alive...

more brill from the Harvest Reaper...

perfect thornback...

and red mullet from Nigel's Ocean Harvest...

as usual there's a good shot of ray from the Shiralee...
 

and when the fish are this fresh these Dovers are undoubtedly Chelsea bound...

with finer weather the mackerel men have managed to get their feathers wet once again...

and a good selection of this fine fish were up for auction this morning...

along with these luscious lemons form the Ocean Harvest...

more than enough to keep the buyers busy...

not quite skrei cod but so fresh they will need eating in a day or two's time...

the inshore netter Tracey Claire's fish looks superb...

in a few weeks time there won't be many boxes of these up for auction as the main spawning season for big white fish passes...

the Govenek of Ladram's spurdogs made good money...

fine start to the day...

and an early start for anyone needing to put their boat on the hard, like the Ygraine now just beginning to dry pout as the tide rapidly drops...

big tides keep the netters in from sea...

so it's time for Richard and Fred not to get in a flap and over-end those gillnets...

into the tubs ready to be repaired...

a thousand pots getting ready to fish...

further along the promenade, work continues on installing a new section in the Jubilee Pool as work continues to install geothermically heated water for the coming season...

both the lighthouse...

and the Scillonian III have been freshly painted...

while the Scillys supply ship Gry Maritha is undergoing a refit in the Dry Dock...

much of Penzance's sheltered harbourfront is now dedicated to housing for the retired...

while the old Bramwell Mill building will soon emerge from its chrysalis-like scaffolding cover as a Premier Inn, nice one Lenny...

and early morning paddle boarder makes his way to the Mount in the mist.

Calling all fishermen - Cefas and the Dolphin By-catch Workshop needs your help!

"We're very excited by the possibility of forging new solutions to the issue of cetacean by-catch here in the UK. No fisherman wants to capture a dolphin or a porpoise, and we believe there may be as-yet undiscovered or un-tested ways to significantly reduce the chances of this happening - as well as lots we can do to improve the existing options. It's vital that we have the industry at the centre of this workshop: we want to understand the issues directly from their perspective, and make sure the solutions we find are genuinely practical. I'd ask any fisherman who has encountered a problem with cetacean by-catch, or has ideas to bring to this discussion, to get in touch and come along - your input is vital." - Stuart Hetherington, Senior Marine Biologist, CEFAS

Cefas, ZSL and Defra are delighted to be hosting a unique, collaborative workshop focused on the issue of cetacean bycatch in UK fisheries. Our aim is to examine existing practices, UK-wide, for cetacean monitoring and bycatch reduction, explore new ideas, and bring together voices from a wide range of stakeholders to identify concrete actions for the future.

Tuesday 12th to Wednesday 13th March 2019 | Zoological Society of London

Download the agenda here

All fishermen enjoy the spectacle of dolphins and porpoises swimming alongside or in the bow wave of their boats. The video above was shot aboard the Newlyn netter, Ajax while steaming to a set of nets. No dolphins were caught in her nets that trip.

Much has been achieved by fishermen, especially those working gill nets, to deter dolphins and porpoises from getting caught in fishing gear. This workshop would love to hear from any fisherman or skipper who feels they have something to offer by way of information, ideas, or thoughts on the subject.  

The two day worksop is looking to bring together fishermen, scientists, engineers, policy makers and NGO’s from around the world. Fishermen are the ones with the widest and best experience of by-catches and best placed to help work towards the best means of preventing such by-catches. If you have any thoughts or ideas, large or small, please make them known by email so that they can be included in the workshops - first hand evidence will help push the ability to keep reducing by-catches to a minimum in the future.

Better still, if you feel willing and able to join the event there is funding and accommodation available!

The workshops will share existing knowledge and experience of how reducing by-catches and monitoring across a range of marine species has been successful worldwide and how that could be further applied to bycatches in the UK, by:

• Reviewing levels of cetacean bycatch in UK fisheries and methods for monitoring these;
• Exploring examples of bycatch reduction in other species of fish and investigate whether these can be adapted for cetaceans;
• Identifying innovative solutions to reduce cetacean bycatch and assessing whether they are practical for UK fishing fleets;
• Envisioning the future for reducing cetacean by-catch and identify areas for further research in the UK.

Through a series of presentations, debate, and plenary discussion, the workshop will be divided into multiple sessions, including gear modifications, new technologies, real-time reporting, spatial management, industry-led research, and more.

Team Involved

• Catherine Bell, Senior Policy Advisor, Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
• Stuart Hetherington - Senior Marine Biologist, Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science 
• Rob Deaville - Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP) Project Manager, Zoological Society of London
• Joanna Barker -  Marine and Freshwater Conservation Programme Project Manager, Zoological Society of London
• Milly Oakley - Event Manager, Zoological Society of London
• Katrina Ryan - Director, Mindfully Wired Communications
• Charlotte Tindall - Communications Consultant

You can download the agenda for the event here: https://www.cefas.co.uk/cetacean-bycatch-workshop/

Please take part in the 2018 Bass Survey for Sea Bass Fisheries Conservation UK (SBFC UK).

Line caught bass 

Welcome to the 2018 Bass Survey for Sea Bass Fisheries Conservation UK (SBFC UK).

Please read the following information before starting the survey. ​

All fishers, both recreational and commercial across the UK (excluding Scotland) can take part in this survey. If you are not a fisher, please email us for further details on how you can contribute. SBFC UK is a project tasked with describing sea bass fisheries on a regional level to help improve future sea bass conservation and management. This survey allows us to complete that description by gathering information directly from you, we will collate this evidence to create an accurate picture of regional sea bass fisheries in the UK. We also want to underline where data gaps are to help prioritise our science to best suit the needs of fishers in each region. We hope to address these data gaps through fisher-led data collection and collaborations, email us for more details.

To take the survey please click here:

Once you've completed the survey, please feel free to share this survey using the link: https://tinyurl.com/SBFC-UK-Bass-Survey-2018

Important guidelines: 

This is a confidential survey and will take approximately 10-15 minutes. Only one entry can be submitted per person, to enter for more than one individual, using one device, please contact us. You can go back and edit your responses until you exit the survey by selecting "Go Back". You cannot save your progress between sessions, so please complete the survey before exiting. You can keep an eye on your progress with the progress bar at the bottom of each page.

​

This survey closes on the 31st December 2018 at 23:59. Thank you for your participation!


If you experience any issues please email sbfc@cefas.co.uk.

It's a Cefas Saturday.

 That's a lorra lorry to reverse down the quay......

 keep 'er comin'.........

 in safe hands.......

 7 stone boxes don't move too easily......

time for the engineers to come ashore after giving the St Georges the all clear.......

so that she can head back to sea.......

two-way traffic this morning.......

Nathan hands over the week's samples from the Cefas skate research trip........

let go of that springer, commandeered for a trip, father Curtis is about to jump aboard.......

so clean you can almost see your face in it.......

there's a queue forming for ice........

that's a fine looking ray Lionel!